From time-to-time St. Landry Now will highlight one of our advertisers. Today we feature Savoie’s® Foods.
In 1949 Eula Morris Savoie and her husband Tom Savoie, opened Savoie’s Grocery, at the suggestion of her parents. They bought the store so Eula could keep working even while raising her family. The business grew and in 1952 Tom and Eula purchased land and started a hog farming business. When the price of hogs dropped in 1955, at the suggestion of Eula’s mother, the couple began making sausage and other pork products that they could sell.
At first, they used a hand-operated home meat grinder and her mother’s recipes to make the smoked sausage. They also made boudin and hogshead cheese that they sold in their store. As those items became more popular, Eula branched out and started selling her foodstuffs throughout the area.
People loved Savoie’sproducts, and as the company grew new products were added. In the 1960s Eula started making and selling real Cajun Roux. That was a huge success since area cooks were delighted to have Savoie’s® Roux to use in their gumbos, stews, etc. As the company became more diversified, other products like rice dressing mix were added. Thanks to improved production methods, wider distribution, smart marketing and a rising demand for authentic Cajun food products, the Savoie’s® brand continued to expand.
In 1972 Eula purchased Tom’s interest in the company. Over the years the company continued to grow and expanded into a brand that is recognized not just in St. Landry Parish, but throughout Louisiana and many other states.
When Ms. Eula was interviewed by Ellie Hebert in 1993 for an article in the Daily World newspaper, she said: “I want to see how far a women can push something, so many people think a woman can’t do anything. With a determined mind and trust in the Lord, you can do anything.” Eula Morris Savoie constantly proved throughout her lifetime what a woman could do.
Eula Savoie died on January 6, 2010, leaving behind a great legacy — a Cajun food empire. And with her surviving family members following the standards she set, that food empire continues to grow. Today, Savoie’s Food is a multimillion-dollar enterprise run by Frederick Lafleur. It supplies delicious and high-quality Cajun food products to national and independent grocery chains such as Walmart, Albertson’s, and Winn-Dixie, to privately owned groceries, as well as to award-winning restaurants in other states, where Savoie’s® Smoked Sausages and other Cajun food products are served daily. Savoie’s® Cajun food products are also available for purchase online.
